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LOU GEHRIG
POSTED BY EIZ ON THURSDAY, 19 JANUARY, 2012, 7:14 AM
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By Terry Richard, The Oregonian Enlarge Jamie Francis, The Oregonian Portland, Oregon--
01/26/2012-- Fred Noble, who says he has done about everything a human being can do is
approaching Lou Gehrig's disease the same way he has approached the rest of ...
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LOU GEHRIG
Posted byo Eiz n Thursday, 19 January, 2012, 7:14 AM
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Enlarge Jamie Francis, The Oregonian
P o r t l a n d , O r e g o n--01/26/2012-- F r e d
Noble, who says he has done about
everything a human being can do is
approaching Lou Gehrig's disease the
same way he has approached the rest of
his life. He has remodeled most of his
home to accommodate his sickness.
After skiing all day, when lifts were closing, he shouldered his skis and hiked the snowfields high
above Timberline Lodge or Mt. Hood Meadows (when this was legal).
As the sun began to set, he clamped into his bindings, gave a hoot and holler and headed for his
car, 3,000 to 5,000 feet below, arriving just before dark.
Diagnosed with an incurable disease, the Portland man who epitomized adventure sports in
Oregon for more than four decades knows the end is coming. Noble is gradually losing control of
his muscles due to ALS, the disease named for New York Yankees star Lou Gehrig in the 1930s.
Register: skitodefeatals.org, 800-681-9851During his prime, Noble skied more than 7 million
vertical feet using helicopters as the lift. But even more amazing is the enthusiasm he showed for
deep powder skiing, windsurfing and paragliding, three cutting-edge sports he pushed to the limits
in venues around the world.
Noble is using his myriad connections to plan one last bash, Ski to Defeat ALS, a fundraiser for the
Oregon and southwest Washington chapter of the ALS Association. He plans to raise $100,000.
"No sweat," he says.
ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) is a progressive degenerative nerve disease. It is rare (about
500 people in the Oregon chapter have it), and has no known cause or cure. The drug Riluzole